Solar House

In this instructable, I will be showing you how I made a solar house out of cardboard and connected a circuit throughout the house for a fan, speaker, and LED lights. This circuit provides electricity to each of these through a battery that is powered by solar panels. I made this so I could create a model of a house that was powered by solar. This is a very cool project to create because in the process I learned how a solar house is powered by the circuitry in the house. A solar house is a great project for everyone to try and I encourage you to try it for yourself. Through the process you will learn how solar powers a house and different ways to troubleshoot.

Before you start creating or making anything, first you need to gather all the supplies that will be needed. The amount of materials you need may vary, but listed below are all of the supplies that will be needed.

Fan, Keweisi mini multi-meter, euro splicing blocks, USB car charger, USB cable switch, switches, powerbank/battery, LEDs, music speaker, alligator clamps/wires, wire strippers/cutters, solar panels, screw driver, cardboard, hobby knife, mat to protect the table, hot glue gun, notebook, pencil, solder, soldering iron, electrical tape, resistor, and a patient attitude.

First, I started the project by creating a plan for what I wanted the house to look like. I wanted to make it two feet wide and around two feet tall. The reason I wanted the house two feet wide was so then I would have a good amount of room to put the solar panels on the roof of the house. I also wanted to have four different levels of the house. Instead of using stairs to connect the different levels, I wanted to use a ladder to give the house a sense of uniqueness so then it would be different compared to the average house with stairs. I planned on having an outdoor space that would be like a roof but the roof would be two levels higher. Then a solar panel could go on the outside patio and there would be two on the roof.

Once I was done with planning out how I wanted to setup up my house and how it would look, I started to build it. I started by getting pieces of cardboard. Once I had cardboard, I measured the lengths of the sides that I wanted and then cut the cardboard with a hobby knife. Then I used the same piece and made multiple pieces by cutting around the same piece to save time. I recommend doing this because it is a good time saver, so you don't have to measure the sides of the cardboard and you can just guide your knife on the side of the cardboard. After I had all the pieces of cardboard I needed, then I started hot gluing the outside of the walls together with the ground of the house. When I had the sides and the ground all glued together, I decided to make the ladder, so I could make sure each floor would fit together correctly. I placed the ladder on the taller side of the house, so each floor could be accessed. Then, I added the first level above the ground and next the second level. Following the first two levels, I glued the third level, which would also be the area that a solar panel would be since there is an outside space. Once I was done with the third level, I added a wall on the left near the solar panel so I could add another level. Then I glued the fourth level which helped me perfectly secure the roof when I attached it above the fourth level. Next, sense I was done with the roof I put the two solar panels on top. When I was done with the house, I realized that it looked empty so I decided to add walls on some of the levels. It was pretty easy to do because you just have to measure the height and width of the level to the next floor so you can slide it into the level with ease. I recommend adding the rooms before putting the next level on top so then it is easier to measure the dimensions you want for the room. After I thought I was done building the house, I realized that the solar panel on the third level was being blocked by part of the house so I decided to cut part of it off so that the sun could get to the panel from any direction.

What are series and parallel circuits? In a series circuit, all components are connected end-to-end to form a single path for the current to flow. In a parallel circuit, the components are connected so that each component has its own separate branch and the same voltage is applied to each component. Parallel circuits are the standard circuits found in home electrical wiring because of how reliable it is and how failure does not affect every device in a home. Parallel is also good for different appliances since they have their own separate branch of power. I know it seems like parallel is better for anything that needs power in a house, but series is still better for some things. Series is a better circuit than parallel when you are using it to power LED lights. Running a series circuit helps to provide the same amount of current to each individual LED. This means each LED in the circuit will be the same brightness and will not allow a single LED to hog more current than another. When using these circuits to power a house, I recommend experimenting between the two to see which one works better for you. If one circuit doesn't work then I recommend trouble shooting and trying the other circuit to see if it works. Between these two circuits there is a lot of trial and error you may have to go through before your circuit works the way you want it to.

Before I start talking about the relationship between voltage and amperage with series and parallel wiring, let me define voltage and amperage. Voltage is the electric potential (energy) between two points in a circuit. It is the force or push that moves the electrons. Amperage is the rate/speed at which electric charge flows past a specific point in a circuit. Different loads/components use different amounts of current based on their design. In a series circuit, the current through each of the components is the same, and the voltage across the circuit is the sum of the voltages across each component. In a parallel circuit, the voltage in each of the components is the same, and the total current is the sum of the currents through each component. To say it in a less complicated way, voltage is additive in series and stays the same in parallel. Amperage stays the same in series and is additive in parallel. Also, the sun doesn't affect voltage that much, but it does affect amperage a lot.

When I started creating the circuit, I decided that I wanted to start by connecting the solar panels and end with the loads. Whenever starting wiring, I recommend getting to know what you are dealing with by measuring voltage and amperage. First I measured the voltage and amperage for the solar panels and the loads. Each black panel had 18 volts and 0.04 amps. The green panel had around 18.2 volts and 0.06. Then I started to think about SAV PAA. SAV stands for series adds voltage. PAA stands for parallel adds amperage. In series, the voltage would be 54.2, but in parallel the voltage would be around 18. In series the amperage would be around 0.45, but in parallel the amperage would be 0.14. Now that I knew that volts would be increased in series and amperage would be increased in parallel, I knew that if the loads I am using don't have high voltage then I have to connect the panels in parallel so the loads wouldn't short circuit and blow. Once I realized this, I measured each load. The fan's voltage was 2.3 and had 0.3 miliamps. The LED's voltage was 2.25 and had 22 miliamps. The speaker's voltage was 3.2 and had 0.8 miliamps. Now that I knew the voltage wasn't that high, I knew I needed to connect the panels in parallel. Depending on the loads you are using will decide whether you want to have you panels in series or parallel. Now that I had my panels connected in parallel, I had a USB car charger that would be in between the panels and the battery. I needed the USB car charger because it helps lower the voltage because if the voltage wasn't lowered then all the loads would blowout.

Once I was done with the panels all the way to the battery, I needed to connect the loads. What I originally did, was I had everything connected in series, but the wires were going everywhere and the circuit wasn't working properly. Once I realized that series circuit wasn't going to work, I had to trouble shoot and figure out a way so everything could be wired into parallel. I decided to have a main switch connected to the battery so nothing could work if that switch wasn't on. Then I had a positive and a negative wire go to a euro splicer, which led to a bigger euro splicer using two positive and two negative wires. Once the wires were correctly placed into the splicer, I had to screw down the top so the wires would stay in place. Then, coming out of the splicer, I had two positive and two negative wires coming out of one side and on the other side of the splicer, I planned on having the three LEDs connected through one positive and one negative wire. Each positive and negative wire would connect to a switch, where the load would connect too. Once each of the three loads had a switch, the circuit was ready to work. The fan and the speaker worked, but only one of the three LEDs I used worked. I am not sure why all of them wouldn't work, but thanks to parallel, the other loads still work with one LED. In a series circuit, if one load didn't work, then all of them wouldn't work.

There are several ways you can wire your house. Each load could be wired in series or parallel circuits. I put them all in parallel circuits since parallel circuits works best in a house. Most standard 120-volt household circuits in your home are parallel circuits. Outlets, switches, and light fixtures are wired in such a way that the hot and neutral wires maintain a continuous circuit pathway independent from the individual devices that draw their power from the circuit. This works for a house that you could make on a much smaller scale. When wiring a house you have to consider multiple things including, what circuit type you want to create, how will you be connecting everything together, and where you want everything to go. When creating a circuit, I recommend putting everything in parallel, then you will know what is going to what. This is also good since if somethings may not be working, it will not affect the whole circuit. You have to decide how you want to connect the solar panels to the USB car charger, the battery to the euro splicer, and the euro splicer to the loads, whether it is by alligator clamps, soldering, or just twisting the ends of wires together. I don't recommend alligator clamps because the wires may be too long or too short for your liking. For wire that doesn't have clamps on them, you can decide how long or short you want them to be just by cutting them yourself. When wiring, always consider where you want each load and solar panel to go.

Before I explain how to achieve the maximum solar power through the use of solar and panel azimuths, I will define azimuth and panel azimuth. The azimuth is a reading on a compass, with North as zero, East as 90, South as 180, and West as 270. The panel azimuth is the position of the panel, which is perpendicular to the sun by using a compass reading. Whichever way the sun is facing, you want you solar panel to be perpendicular to the sun so it can get the most energy. If the solar panel is facing the sun straight on, then you will be getting the most efficient energy. When doing this for yourself, I recommend placing a pencil in the middle of a paper compass. Once you have done that, I want you to draw a line on the shaded part that the pencil is creating on the paper compass. Then your solar panel should be horizontally placed and centered at the end of the line where the tip of the pencil was. Now you should have the best place for the panel to have optimal sun exposure.

You always want to face your solar panel at the sun, so you can get the most power while also being efficient. The best angle depends on where you live because the angles are all a little different. The angle will always be between 30 to 45 degrees. In Santa Rosa, the best angle is 38 degrees. Then when I made my solar panels angled toward the sun, I made sure to have a 38 degree angle, so they could be the most efficient and generate the most power from the sun. Next, we have solar altitude, solar altitude is the height of the sun in the sky measured by angles. The solar altitude helps determine what angle you want your solar panel angled at. By finding the solar altitude we know that for Santa Rosa, the best tilt for a solar panel is 38 degrees. By knowing that Santa Rosa's location latitude is 38 degrees, that is how you know that 38 degrees is the best tilt for the solar panel. This angle is based on maximizing the annual energy production of the solar panel.